Penghu。Erkan Clan

位於兩個高地中間凹處的二崁聚落，是澎湖保存最完整的古厝群，也是國內第一個傳統聚落保存區。小小的聚落保存了二十幾棟的閩南式傳統古厝，這裡的房子都是當地居民就地取材，用硓（石古）石蓋成的，別有一番風味。 註：硓（石古）石就是珊瑚礁石

Located in the hollow place between two uplands, Erkan Clan is the most well preserved ancient houses, and also the first traditional settlement preservation in Taiwan. More than twenty Minnan traditional ancient houses have been preserved in this small clan. These houses were built with the local Lao (Shigu) Rock which is coral. They are very special.

二崁是「陳」姓的單姓聚落，房舍排列相當工整的。不知怎麼的，明明是古風古意的聚落，卻給我一種「很可愛」的印象。我想或許就是因為這裡的房子都矮矮的，才讓我有這種感覺吧！

Erkan is for “Chen” surname. The houses are well organized. I don’t know why these ancient houses look very “cute” to me. I think that perhaps the fact they are very short made me feel this way!

這些保存下來的古厝，經過整修後，成了一間間小型的地方博物館，有常民生活館、傳統博物館、童玩館、褒歌館、漢藥紀念館等等。

These preserved ancient houses have been converted to a local museum group which consists of the “Museum of the traditional life”, “Tradition Museum”, “Museum of children’s folk games”, “Museum of Erkan Praise Songs” and “Museum of Herbal Medicine”…etc.

「我在曬太陽，請勿揑我！」，陶甕上寫著這麼一句話。到底是曬什麼呢？原來，這聞起來有艾草清香的東西，是當地人早期用來驅蚊的蚊香。

“I am sunbathing, please do not touch me!” this is written on the pottery. What is this for? It has grass fragrance, was the mosquito repellent which was used locally.

「二崁傳香」是用天人菊、艾香、山芙蓉的莖葉，曬乾後研磨成粉，再用手工搓揉成柱香，除了用來驅蚊外，還有鎮煞、避邪及安定神經的作用。在「褒歌館」裡，可以看到二崁傳香的製作過程。

註：數百年前從金門移民至此的二崁人，過去大多從事中藥材生意，所以在這裡可以看到不少其衍生運用出來的常民用品與飲食習慣，傳香外就是其中一個例子。

“Erkan Incense” is made with Gaillardia pulchella, Blumea aromatica and Hibiscus leaves. After they were dried, they were ground to powder and kneaded by hand into incense sticks. They are used as the mosquitoes repellent and have additional functions as dispelling the evil and calming the nerves. We can still see the production process in the “Museum of Erkan Praise Songs”.

PS: The immigrants who moved from Jinmen to Erkan about a decade ago were all in Chinese medicine business; therefore, lots of daily supplies and food habits can still be seen.

那褒歌又是什麼東西呢？褒歌是澎湖人用來傳唱生活周遭事物的即興創作。「褒歌館」裡可以買到褒歌糖、褒歌冊、褒歌扇及褒歌明信片等特色商品。

What is “Praise Songs”? It is how local people describe their living with creative songs. We can buy the Praise Song Candy, Praise Song booklet, Praise Song fan, and Praise Song postcard in the” Museum of Praise Songs”.

我很喜歡用硓（石古）石築的圍牆

I really like these coral walls.

石臼、石椅、石井

Stone mortar, Stone Chair, Stone well.

在聚落裡走著走著，突然看到這間可愛的傳統雜貨店，台灣早期沒有超商，人們買東西都到雜貨店去。這間雜貨店裡頭的東西不多，有一個老婆婆坐在裡頭，不斷的向來客推薦放在矮桌上的該店「招牌商品」－土仁粿及金瓜粿。

Walking in the village, I encountered this very cute traditional grocery store. In the past, there were no supermarkets in Taiwan; grocery stores were the only places to shop. This store does not have too many supplies. An elderly lady was sitting inside and recommending her specialty items on the table-“Glutinous Rice with Peanuts and Glutinous Rice with Pumpkin”.

土豆稞（上圖）是用麵粉、糯米粉及地瓜製作粿皮，裡頭再包上澎湖的特產花生製作而成的，吃起來香香甜甜，是幾百年傳承下來用來祭拜神明的傳統食物，也是澎湖相當具有特色的地方小點心。

Glutinous Rice with peanuts (photo above) is made with flour, sticky rice powder, sweet potato, and stuffed with the special local peanuts. It smells and tastes so good. It is the traditional worshipping items and also a special local delicacy.

內餡為竹筍、肉燥的金瓜粿（下圖）有四種口味，黃色為南瓜、紅色為懷山、紫色為紫色地瓜、綠色為海菜。金瓜粿的顏色十分鮮豔，但不用擔心，這些都是天然色素哦！

It stuffed with bamboo shoots, pork sauces (photo below), Glutinous Rice with Pumpkin has 4 different flavors. The yellow is the pumpkin, red the huaishan, purple the purple sweet potato, and green the seaweeds. These colors are so vivid. Don’t worry. They are all natural food coloring!

二崁聚落可以介紹的東西很多，可惜的是，行前我對它一無所知，再加上時間有限，因此沒有深入細走。有機會，我還會想再回到這裡來，再挖掘一下澎湖人的故事。

A lot of things can be introduced in Erkan clan. However, it was a short trip so I did not spend more time locally. I will definitely tell you more stories about Penghu’s when I visit here next time. Read More

Penghu。Ocean Ranch

「海洋牧場」是箱網養殖結合觀光的新興產業，業者用浮筒在海上建構平台，供遊客釣魚、享用海鮮等活動，一個可吃可玩的海上樂園。

“Ocean Ranch” is a new business which combines net cultivation and tourism. The owner uses floaters to build a platform on the ocean for tourists to fish and enjoy fresh seafood. It is a playful ocean paradise.

在澎湖的「南海遊客中心」裡有許多家不同業者所經營的海洋牧場可供選擇，我們前往的是「海上皇宫」。買了票，再到碼頭搭接駁船前往海洋牧場。

There are many Ocean Ranches that can be selected in the “Nanhai Visitor Center” in Penghu. We selected “Sea Palace”. We bought the tickets and waited for the ferry to pick us up to go to Ocean Ranch.

一上岸，迎接我們的是滿桌的新鮮牡蠣。海洋牧場裡的活動項目之一，就是有無限量供應的炭烤鮮蚵，讓遊客儘量享用。

We were welcomed by a whole table of fresh oysters once we docked. One of the activities in Ocean Ranch was to enjoy the unlimited grilled oysters.

牡蠣遇熱會爆噴汁液，所以要將牡蠣的開口朝內，若烤太久肉質會乾掉，且殼灰掉落炭火時還會發出爆聲響。到底要怎麼判斷牡蠣熟了沒？聽到微爆聲及牡蠣邊緣開始有泡沫時，就可以食用了。

Oyster’s juice would burst once it is heated; therefore, it is better to make the oyster’s opening inward. The oyster would become dry if it is grilled too long and the falling ashes make an exploding sound once they touch the charcoal. How do we know if the oysters are cooked? If you hear a mild exploding sound and the bubbles start coming out from the edge of the oysters, they are cooked.

聽完船上服務人員的解說後，就是自己動手的時刻了。現捕現烤的牡蠣，味道自然是鮮美無比。來此的遊客邊烤邊吃，吃的滿桌子堆滿蚵殼，且一盤烤完再一盤，好不過癮。

After the staff’s demonstration, it is time to DIY. The grilled fresh catch oysters taste delicious. The table was filled with the oyster shells; visitors finished one dish after another. We had so much fun!

除了鮮蚵外，現場還有免費無限量的海鮮粥可品嚐。除此之外，想吃生魚片、鮮魚湯等海鮮大餐的人，也可以自行付費享用。

Beside the fresh oysters, there are unlimited seafood rice soups to taste. If you would like to eat sashimi, fresh fish soup, and seafood cuisine, additional cost will apply.

在浮台上四處走動，可以看到現場人員的工作情形。

Walk on the platform; we can see how they work.

吃飽喝足後，可以浮台去釣魚。浮台上有數個大小不一的養殖池，每個池子裡有不同的魚種，遊客可以自行選擇池子垂釣。

After the eating, we were ready for fishing. There are a several different sizes cultivation ponds with different kinds of fish. We got to choose the pond we liked.

不過，這裡釣魚不用勾子，直接綁上半截鯖魚作餌。

However, fishing here needs not use a hook. A half mackerel is tied to the pole as the bait for fishing.

既然來了，當然要嘗試一下。不過，我等了好久，只見魚兒在餌附近遊來遊去，卻怎樣也不肯咬上一口。

I had to try it since I was here. However, I waited for a while, but there were no fish caught. They were swimming around the bait.

但我釣不到，不代表其它人也釣不到，同行的友人就把性情兇猛的海鱺給釣上來了。還有朋友也差掉把花枝給釣上岸，只可惜花枝鬆了口逃走了。

註：釣到魚，不是代表可以把魚煮來吃，而是還要放回池子裡，這只是體驗活動而已。不過釣到魚的人，可以換得一張飲料卷。

I did not catch anything, but a friend in the group caught the cobia. Another friend almost caught a squid and it ran away unfortunately.

PS: The fish caught need to be returned to the pond. This is only an activity. However, you would get a coupon for a drink if you catch a fish.

實釣花枝可要小心不要被它的墨汁給噴到！工作人員在捕花枝時，又噴水又噴墨汁的，嚇得圍觀的人尖叫閃躲。仔細看，照片裡的花枝噴出了長長的黑色汁液！

Be careful with the squid juice! When the worker was catching a squid, it spurted black juice. We were screaming. If you look closely on this photo, the squid just spurted!

[超大的花枝]

A giant squid.

海洋牧場的活動大概是三小時，除了白天的活動外，晚上也有夜釣小管的行程可供選擇。我個人覺得，海洋牧場的體驗活動頗有意思的，很適合安排半日來此體驗一下.

It was a 3 hour activity. Besides the day activity, you can select the small squid fishing at night. Personally, I think this activity in the Ocean Ranch is good for a very fun half day. Read More

Penghu Island Fireworks Festival

澎湖是位於台灣本島西南方，是個擁有九十幾個島嶼所組成的美麗群島，這裡是人們享受海洋、沙灘及日光浴的渡假聖地。每年的澎湖花火節，是澎湖最熱鬧的時候，今年舉辦第八年，但卻我是頭一回參加，雖然天候不佳，但能夠親身參與其中，也是很開心的一件事。

Located in the south-west Taiwan, Penghu islands are composed of more than 90 small islands. This area is a paradise to enjoy sun, beach, and sun bathing. The most famous activity on the island is the Fireworks Festival. This year was the 8th annual event, but my first time to participate. Although the weather was not too good, just being part of it could make me very exciting.

花火節的施放地點是在馬公觀音亭的西瀛虹橋。煙火秀是八點半舉行，但七點多遊客就開始朝著觀音亭廣場前進，遠遠的已看到不少人坐在堤岸邊了。

The Fireworks conducted on the Xiyinghong Bridge, Magong Guanyin Pavilion. It started at 8:30 at night; however, people started to move into the Guanyin Pavilion square around 7:00 pm. I saw lots of people sitting by the embankment.

等了一個多小時，終於等到了這一刻，當天空燃起第一道煙火時，四周的尖叫聲與快門聲就沒停過，大夥興奮的「哇～」個不停。雖然手持拍攝的效果不佳，但我還是忍不住的狂按快門。

Finally, the exciting moment came after an hour wait. When the first firework went up, people could not stop screaming and shooting with their cameras. Although I did not have the tripod and the handheld shooting images might not turn out good, I still could not stop shooting.

煙火秀長達十五分鐘，但施放約2/3且正精彩時，雨又開始飄了起來，而且越下越大。我趕緊收起相機準備躲雨去，但煙火實在太美了，我只好冒著相機受潮的危險再搶拍了幾張，然後欣賞到整個煙火秀結束，才匆匆逃離。

The fireworks lasted for 15 minutes. After 2/3 of the show, it started to drizzle and rain. I had to put away my camera; however, the show was just too pretty for me not to take more photos, therefore, I went back to shoot more. After the whole show finished, I started to run!

到澎湖肯定要到沙灘走走，澎湖有名的沙灘是在吉貝島，那裡也是最多遊客聚集的地方，但這回我並沒有前往吉貝，而是在馬公島（澎湖本島）的南邊－山水沙灘停留。

Come to Penghu, the beach is a must-visit place. Jibei Island is the most famous and crowded area. I did not go there this time, but stayed in the south shore of Magong Island (Main Island) - Shanshui Beach.

山水沙灘原本是當地人的私房景點，因海邊堤防旁開了一間「衝浪俱樂部」，除提供衝浪板租借外還有衝浪教學，讓這裡慢慢成了衝浪愛好者的聚集地，遊客也開始在這裡停留。

Sahanshui Beach was a private own scenic spot. Because the “Surf Club” opened near the beach, more visitors have come here to surf. “Surf Club” has the surf board rental services, and also provides surfing lessons. Sahanshui Beach has become a surfers’ gathering place.

Greg是英國籍的澳州人，原是雜誌專業攝影師及特約衝浪記者，因緣際會來到澎湖，因酷愛衝浪而結識阿泉，「衝浪俱樂部」就是他們兩人開設的。

Greg is an Australian British. He was a magazine professional photographer and a surfing reporter. Because of the fate and surfing passion, he got to know Aquan and opened the “Surf Club” business together.

即然都來到這裡了，當然也要來體驗一下衝浪。同行的友人一一換好衣服、選好衝浪板後，便正式展開衝浪學習課程教學。

Of course we had to learn how to surf since we were here. Friends all changed, selected their boards, and started the surfing lesson.

學員下水前，教練先示範一次正確的動作。

Before entering the water, trainer demonstrated the correct positions.

接著，就是一對一個別衝浪體驗。

Then, it was a one-on- one surfing lesson.

當然，對初學者來說，摔倒肯定是一定會的囉！

Of course the beginners would definitely fall into the water!

到澎湖，當然不能錯過海鮮大餐！在澎湖停留時間，我可是狂吃海鮮，因為食材新鮮，所以每一道都相當鮮美好吃。除了海鮮外，鮮甜幼嫩的澎湖絲瓜也是必嚐的一道佳餚之一！

Don’t miss the seafood in Penghu. I was eating lots of fresh seafood while I was there. They were all yummy. Beside the seafood, baby fresh sweet Penghu squash is a must- eat dish too!

「金瓜炒米粉」可以說是一般海鮮餐廳的招牌菜，香甜的金瓜、Q中帶勁的米粉，再配上鮮甜的蝦仁或花枝拌炒，好吃的讓人一碗接一碗。

“Squash Fried Rice Noodle” is the specialty dish in the seafood restaurant. The sweet squash, rice noodles, stir fry with dry small shrimp or octopus; they were just too good to pass the second.

澎湖可玩可看的很多，我再慢慢介紹給大家哦～

More interesting places and things of Penghu would be shared with you all later on.~ Read More

Wind Lion God Statues in Kinman

長期因戰亂而不停伐木的結果，讓金門的山林日益減少。少了綠林的庇護，每當東北季風吹起，狂風暴塵便撲向村落，讓居民深受風害之苦。為了抵禦風擾，當地居民在各村落迎風口設立了的風獅爺，當作村落保護神，以阻擋漫天風沙與惡煞的侵襲。村民會配合年節、廟會活動，定期對風獅爺進行祀拜，風獅爺可以說是金門最特殊的民間信仰及鄉土景觀了。

Due to the pro-long civil wars and non-stop wood cutting, the number of trees in the mountains has declined. Without protection from the trees, the north east wind and dust would blow to the village directly. Residents were suffering the damages caused by the dusty wind. In order to block the strong wind, the local residents built the Wind Lion God statue at the wind entrance as the protection god to block the dusty sand invasion. Villagers perform the worship ceremony and temple activities every year. Wind Lion God is a very special local faith and legend.

金門的風獅爺約有七十餘尊，每尊高矮不一、表情各異，有些威武兇猛、有些看起來卻相當的樸拙可愛。這些造型千變萬化的風獅爺，除了鎮風止煞的功用外，如今也成了金門必看的風景之一了。

There are about 70 Wind Lion God statues in Kinman. They are in different heights and with facial expressions. Some looks fierce, some quite simple, innocent and cute. All of them were built with the belief to block the dusty wind, and also have become must- see local scenery in Kinman.

據說，風獅爺很愛吃糖，因此村民經常會拿著糖果去祭拜，我們到訪時，果真看到一支棒棒糖祭品呢！

It was said that Wind Lion God loved to eat candy. Villagers often bring candies for during worshipping. When we were there, we did see a lollipop there.

風獅爺大多是用花崗石刻的，臉部五官特色為大圓眼、寬鼻及大嘴。口大表示張大嘴能吃風，才能幫金門居民抵擋強風之苦。除了五官表情外，風獅爺的高矮、姿勢、佩戴的符器，甚至性別也都不一樣。像這尊身上有葫蘆的風獅爺，就是公的風獅爺，想求子嗣的人，可以用手摸摸葫蘆來求子哦！

The Wind Lion God statues were mostly made of granite. They have big round eyes, wide noses and big mouths. The big mouth would eat the wind to help the villagers to block the strong wind. Besides the facial expression, the height, weapons it carries and gender are all different for each statue. This one with a gourd bottle is a male Wind Lion. If you would like to have a boy, you can touch the gourd bottle to bring you luck!

風獅爺的姿勢有直立姿也有蹲踞姿，還有嵌在牆壁的。這尊位於民宅壁上的風獅爺，除了鎮風外，還有防止路沖的功能。

The positions of the Wind Lion God statues include standing and squatting. Some of them are embedded in the wall. This Wind Lion embedded in the wall can block the wind and also prevent bad luck.

風獅爺是金門獨有的民間信仰，在台灣其他各地都看不到這樣的風俗。來訪的遊客總喜歡按圖索驥的，找尋一尊尊遍佈金門的風獅爺。別擔心找不著，友善熱情的當地村民會很樂意引指方向的。

Wind Lion god is a locally unique faith in Kinman, you are not able to see this custom in other places in Taiwan. The tourists visiting Kinman would like to follow the map to look for each statue. Don’t worry if you can’t find them, the friendly villagers will be happy to guide you.

［相關網站］Related Link

金門國家公園 Kinman National Park

http://www.kmnp.gov.tw/en/index.php?option=com_content&view=frontpage&Itemid=27

Read More

The beautiful Minnan styled villages, Kinmen

天，好藍好藍，是海島渡假勝地才會有的，那種乾淨清爽、徹徹底底的藍。只是這樣的藍，襯著的不是白沙椰影也不是茅草涼亭，而是農夫扛著鋤頭走過的綠畂田疇，飛鳥停駐的燕尾馬背屋脊，及貓咪輕巧躍過的紅瓦與石牆……這裡是金門，有著美麗聚落景致的迷人小島。

The deep, clean blue sky can be only seen on the island resort. However, this blue sky is not lining up with the white sand beach or pavilion. It is the green farm field with farmers’ footprints; cocktail roof ridge with birds’ dock, and the red tiles and stone walls where cats like to jump over….This is Kinmen, a charming island with beautiful scenery.

金門位於中國大陸福建省東南方之廈門外海，西距廈門約10公里，東距台灣約227公里。從中原五胡亂華開始，大陸漳泉地區先先後後因亂世、因拓墾、因征戍移民至此，在這裡落地生根，興建一幢又一幢的宅第、祠堂與廟宇，而形成獨特的聚落文化。金門，就是由這樣大大小小一百多個聚落連接而成，這些聚落至今仍密集保留了傳統閩南古厝，少的有五十棟，多的甚至有二百五十棟以上。

Kinmen Island is located south-east of Xiamen of Fujian province of China. It is located about 10 km west of Xiamen and 227 km east of Taiwan. Beginning from the Fifth Century’s invasion by the northern nomads in the central plains of China, people in the Zhang Quan region started to immigrate to Kinmen to escape the chaos of wars and look for new opportunities. They started to settle in here and built houses, ancestral hall, and temples, which formed a very unique village culture. Hundreds of large and small villages were connected together to become Kinmen. Kinmen still retains 50 to 250 traditional Minnan ancient houses.

傳統閩南古厝的基本型式，大多以三合院或四合院的一落、二落建築為主。相當特別的是，只要資金夠多、腹地夠大、這些建築可以無限的增建。

A traditional pattern of Minnan ancient house has 3 or 4 courtyards. The type of architecture allows the house to expand if money and space are available.

古厝建材以紅磚、白石與花崗石為主，有的古厝底部以花崗石或白石平砌，上半部再以磚瑰斗砌。另外，還有一種相當獨特的「出磚入石」砌法，利用形狀各異的石材、紅磚與瓦礫交錯壘砌，組成冬暖夏涼且堅固耐用的牆體。

The building materials of the ancient house are bricks, white stones and granite. Some of the houses were built with granite or white stone on the bottom of the houses, and bricks on the top. In addition, there is an unique assembly method, named “brick, stone combination”. It used different shapes of stone, bricks, or rubble to stack together to create a very sturdy wall which keeps cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

許多在外經商成功的鄉人賺了錢，就匯款回鄉興建或翻修宅第與宗祠，以光耀門楣，而發達的程度就顯現在古厝的屋脊、馬背、山牆、窗眉及檐柱上。這些精緻的裝飾，讓每一幢建築都成了珍貴的藝術品。

Most of successful business men abroad sent their money back to their hometown for construction or renovation of the houses and ancestral halls. These renovations are reflected on the roof ridge, horseback round arch roof, wall, windows, and pole. These delicate decorations made each building look like a precious art.

金門古厝的裝飾以木雕、磚雕、泥塑、砌磚、彩繪、貼瓷及剪黏等不同手法表現，其中以剪黏這樣的鑲嵌藝術最為著名。

The decorations on Kinman ancient houses included wood engrave, brick engrave, clay sculpture, color painted, paste porcelain, and cut-stick methods. The cut-stick method has been a famous embedded art.

１－木雕 (wood engrave)

２－磚雕 (brick engrave)

３－剪黏 ( cut-stick)

４－組砌 (puzzle style cut)

鮮豔無比的彩面釉磚，也是相當美麗的裝飾藝術。

The colorful porcelain bricks are also a gorgeously decorated art.

燕尾脊是金門閩式建築中很常見的屋脊形式，居民會用立體雕塑或漆上美麗的圖案裝飾。飛翹的燕尾屋脊曲線優美，讓聚落裡的街巷成了一道迷人的風景。

The cocktail roof ridge is often seen in the Minnan roof ridge. It is made with a three dimensional sculpture or painted with beautiful design. The tilted roof ridge made the street a fascinating scene.

山牆與馬背的裝飾，以灰泥雕飾、剪黏或彩繪等形式呈現，相當的多變。

The decoration of the walls and round arch horseback roof are clay sculptures, cut-stick or color painted with different styles.

金門聚落大多是單姓血親共居一地，興建宗祠共同祭奉，以凝聚宗族力量。宗祠無論在風水、建築或裝飾，皆為上上之選。各家的宗祠可以說是聚落建築中，最為精雕細琢、富麗堂皇的。

The residents with the same last name lived in the same community. They build ancestral halls in order to strength their unity. The ancestral halls they built have good fengshui and architecture and are decorated with art crafts, creating a magnificent look in the village.

清末民初，巴洛克式建築的熱潮吹至金門，經商成功的鄉人匯款回鄉，紛紛興起氣派華麗的的洋樓。

During the late Ching Dynasty and early years of the Republic, Baroque-styled architecture became popular in Kinmen. Business men abroad sent their money back to build the ornate western style houses.

聚落裡處處可見這樣閩南大厝與西式洋樓並存的畫面。

You can see the Minnan styled and western styled houses next to each other on the street.

每一間古厝、每一個聚落的組成，都是祖先們辛苦開疆闢土而來的。走訪金門聚落，欣賞這些美麗的建築的同時，也等於是在閱讀金門人的開墾史。

Every ancient house and forming of the villages were the results of diligent ancestors. Wandering in the villages in Kinmen, and enjoying this beautiful architecture at the same time provide a taste of the history.

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